Author: bergenclc

The December 2017 Delegates Meeting of the Bergen County Central Trades and Labor Council, AFL-CIO, will be a holiday party, and will be held on Monday, December 11, at 6:30 PM, at the Stony Hill Inn, 231 Polify Rd., Hackensack, NJ.

The newly elected officers of the Bergen CLC will be sworn in at this event.

Please bring a new unwrapped toy, which will be donated to Greater Bergen Community Action, Inc.

On behalf of the Bergen County Central Trades and Labor Council, AFL- CIO and in partnership with the Bergen County Building and Construction Trades Council, AFL-CIO, I would like to cordially invite you to attend a Cocktail Reception on Tuesday, September 26, 2017 from 6:00 pm to 9:00 pm at the Stony Hill Inn located at 231 Polify Rd, Hackensack. The proceeds of this event will benefit our Committee on Political Education (COPE) and support our Labor 2017 Member Mobilization Campaign.

As you know, there is much at stake for working people in this year in the upcoming Gubernatorial and State Legislative election. Electing labor friendly candidates at all levels of government is crucial to achieving a working families agenda for our members.

We hope to build upon our past success and continue to expand our program. These goals can only be achieved by a well financed and resourced Central Labor Council with the solidarity of the entire labor movement.

40,000 workers at AT&T just announced that they will walk off the job Friday at 3pm ET/Noon PT if they haven’t won a fair union contract by then. Vist https://cwa-union.org/att for updates.

This will be the biggest strike in the United States since 40,000 Verizon workers walked out last year, and may be the biggest strike of retail workers at a national company in U.S. history.

Can you join striking workers at a picket line at a nearby retail store Friday, Saturday or Sunday? Picket lines will be up from 3:00 to 6:00 pm on Friday, May 19; and 10:00 am to 6:00 pm on Saturday, May 20 and Sunday, May 21. The Bergen County picket locations are:

The Bergen County Central Trades and Labor Council, AFL-CIO is pleased to offer eight scholarships for the year 2017. Each scholarship will be for $1,000. Only members of local unions affiliated with the Bergen County Central Trades and Labor Council, and their dependents, are eligible and may apply.

We are giving four scholarships in the memory of Abe Solomon, the first elected president of the Bergen Country Central Trades and Labor Council, and four scholarships in the memory of Ed Purtill, the first Executive Director of the United Labor Agency of Bergen County, AFL-CIO Community Services.

Please read all the eligibility requirements. Feel free to put this information on your website, and make as many copies that are needed for your membership.

The Selection Committee requests that all applications are returned by April 15, 2017.

Since the beginning of the scholarship fund 38 years ago, 172 scholarships have been awarded. On behalf of the Board of Trustees and the officers of the Bergen Labor Central Trades & Labor Council, thank you for your support and cooperation.

At our last meeting, our delegates voted to endorse the Unity March and Rally “Coming Together to Defend our Values“.

On Sunday, February 12th, join the Bergen County Concerned Citizens, for the Unity March and Rally “Coming Together to Defend our Values,” at the Bergen County Courthouse in Hackensack.

Come together to celebrate and reaffirm our American values of freedom, diversity, and inclusivity, and to push back against hateful, divisive rhetoric. With one voice, we will send a clear message to those around the country who seek to drive us apart: We will not be divided, and we will not be silenced.

Meet at 2:00 PM at the municipal parking lot near Foschini Park before marching to the Courthouse where we will hold our rally.

National “Right to Work” legislation was introduced by Republican Congressmen Steve King and Joe Wilson on Wednesday. This anti-worker policy would be devastating to wages, benefits, and the ability of workers to have a voice on the job. Despite misleading rhetoric, “Right to Work” does not enhance the rights of workers; it is designed solely for the purpose of dismantling unions.

This is a bill that threatens the foundation of the labor movement in all 50 states, and must be stopped. We need all hands on deck to defeat this bill. What you can do right now is call your members of Congress and tell them to oppose “Right to Work”. CLICK HERE for a directory of New Jersey’s Congressional Delegation.

Numbers don’t lie, and the fact remains that “Right to Work” laws are simply wrong for working people. On average, workers in states with “Right to Work” laws earn less, are less likely to have employer provided health benefits, and see a higher rate of workplace mortality.

For working people, many of whom are struggling to pay their bills and make ends meet, the introduction of such an ill-advised bill is not only an insult, but also a malicious attack on their livelihoods and ability to support their families. The fallout from this policy would be far-reaching. Not only would workers see their wages drop and standard of living undermined, but our economy and businesses, which rely on a vibrant middle class would be adversely impacted.

The New Jersey State AFL-CIO urges its affiliates, community partners, businesses, and elected officials to vigorously oppose this destructive, anti-worker bill. CLICK HERE and make a call to your members of Congress urging them to oppose “Right to Work” and instead pass laws that support the right of working families to make a living.

President-Elect Donald Trump promised he wasn’t going to change Medicare if elected. But his pick for health and human services secretary, Tom Price, has been a vocal supporter of dismantling Medicare and leaving seniors to pick up the tab.

More than 55 million Americans currently depend on Medicare—and that’s not counting the working people who are depending on it when they retire in the future. We can’t let anyone undermine it. So we’re calling on our members of Congress to stand against Price’s nomination for secretary of health and human services.

Donald Trump’s nominee for secretary of labor—fast food CEO Andrew Puzder—would be a disaster for working Americans. He’s railed against a meaningful increase in the minimum wage, opposed expanding overtime pay and supported replacing working people with machines. Of his Carl’s Jr. and Hardee’s restaurants that were investigated for labor law complaints, 60% were found to have violated the law. Most of these complaints were for failure to pay workers minimum wage or overtime.

Now, this guy could be in charge of enforcing our nation’s labor laws.